About South Louisiana

Established in the Greater Baton Rouge area in 1990, the South Louisiana region of Teach For America is a place where folks dance to a different beat. We take pride in our festivals, our food, and our culture while also focusing on the critical work required of us to ensure that we are building equitable communities for our students to lead. As the location of the first bus boycott of the Civil Rights Era, the South Louisiana region has a rich history steeped in inequity, but also in growth, triumph, and possibility.

Like many communities across our country, Louisiana is often divided along racial and socioeconomic lines, however, what makes Louisiana unique is the spirit of community and hospitality that bonds each of us to one another. In recent years, we have seen a diverse group of people across our state come together to tackle the various challenges of inequity head on. Founded on the shared belief that all children deserve access to a great education, Teach For America and the South Louisiana community came together over 25 years ago to bolster the current efforts that were already underway to end educational inequity and expand excellent educational opportunities for more students. Today more than 300 Teach For America leaders are working alongside our urban and rural communities proving every year that all South Louisiana students can achieve at the highest levels.

Economic realities have also helped mobilize the public to support quality education that prepares Louisianans for college and career. The Louisiana Workforce Commission predicts that by 2024 there will be a need for approximately 150,000 new employees across Louisiana’s multiple industry sectors, including healthcare, tourism, and more. Our region focuses on ensuring that our students are achieving their full potential and are provided the education and opportunities to be the leaders of our state.

As our region enters the greatest period of economic growth since the late ‘90s, we find ourselves within a modern-day movement toward social change. In partnership with educators and advocates of all backgrounds, we’re proud of the role Teach For America corps members and alumni have consistently played in passionately ensuring access and opportunity for students in South Louisiana from inside and outside the classroom. Our connected community is reaching unprecedented growth in bringing children the tools and resources they need to achieve their goals.

Collectively, our 12 alumni school leaders and more than 150 teacher leaders are impacting thousands of children in our community each day. At the same time, over 200 Teach For America leaders play key roles across a variety of sectors and industries to create long-term change for all communities. TFA school leaders are working throughout South Louisiana to lead students to academic gains, including the State Superintendent of Education, a TFA alumnus, working to create equitable statewide policies that will change the trajectory of Louisiana students. They do so given a combination of diverse experiences, the skills they built in the classroom and their deep conviction that all students can achieve. Whether classroom leadership turns to leadership in education, politics, entrepreneurship, law, medicine, or any other field, Teach For America will accelerate your leadership trajectory toward systemic change.

You will have a profound impact on your students, and they will have a profound impact on you. This may be the hardest thing you’ve ever done. The triumphs, the failures, the lessons, the relationships you forge will shape and define you. With our training and the generous support of our network, your path to realizing meaningful change in South Louisiana will be one only you can chart.

When diverse, dynamic people come together, incredible things can happen–our network is proof of it.